If you aren’t already aware, Rancid are a towering & monstrous name that bellows through the halls of all things Punk Rock. Tim Armstrong (vocals, guitar) and Matt Freeman (bass, vocals) have been at the fore-front of the scene since rising from the ashes of the Legendary and still-cited Ska-Punk band Operation Ivy and forming Rancid in 1991. Two years later they released their first album, self-titled Rancid, and haven’t looked back. The band have worked tirelessly over the last 20 years to give its fans an unprecedented catalog of crushing, break neck anthems and this time is no different. Friday the 2nd of June marks the milestone that only a handful of bands ever get to experience. The release of Rancid’s long-awaited 10th Studio Album ‘Tomorrow Never Comes’.
The album stands at a whopping 16 tracks long, however, in typical Punk fashion only lasts a surprising 29 minutes. Each track comes crashing through your speakers at breakneck speed and almost seems over before you know it. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing however as every song is followed by another with a new and unique sound crafted to refresh your ears.
The first track on the album is the title track ‘Tomorrow Never Comes’. This song is filled with roaring vocals throughout the majority of the track. The track was the first single released in promotion of this highly anticipated record and it displayed the heights in which Rancid tried to accomplish with this milestone.
‘Tomorrow Never Comes’, both the song and the album, helps bring realization around the idea of a lawless, Mad Max-esque wasteland where hired muscle is waiting on every corner and the future is never guaranteed. With lyrical hooks such as “You can die by pistol or knife or sword / They call him Eddie the Butcher” and “Gonna cheat, steal, and borrow / ‘Cause tomorrow never comes”.
Although this album captures all things revolutionary and will spur on your inner fight against the machine and all things bad in the world, it does not go without its share of catchy hooks. Hooks so catchy that you will find yourself bouncing around your kitchen humming them in a ball of Rancid essence while you marinate in hypocrisy. Tracks such as ‘The Bloody and Violent History’ are examples of this mastery. A hook very simple but so extremely effective. However, as to which ‘Barbary Coast’ this song is referring to is open to interpretation. Another great example of this album’s effective captivation is Track Number 3; ‘Devil in Disguise’.
In order to truly understand how Rancid has pieced together this journey through the post-uprising dust bowl, you’re just going to have to listen to ‘Tomorrow Never Comes’ as no words could fully reveal how successful their efforts have been.
Tomorrow Never Comes is out now on Epitaph Records – stream or buy from all the usual outlets here
Find out more, including tour dates and tickets, on Rancid‘s official website
Review by Kane McEvoy
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